Couch to ATHLETE!

I have had one of the most outstanding years this year and I'm not sure it is possible to have a year that is even better.  The little things are what I will remember... For instance this year included zip lining, vacationing in DC, kayaking, fishing, karaoke, trips to Chicago, meeting new amazing friends, building relationships with old friends and lots of love! Sure I was plagued with injury and now I'm spending this final week of 2012 sick but these are not the things I will remember. I should also acknowledge that 2012 has brought loss, tears, mistakes, frustration... but you have to put life into perspective. What is really important? I think the experiences I listed above are what matter. Of course this blog is about my quest to becoming an athlete and here is what I have to say about that; Athletically not much has happened this year. I did my first Olympic distance triathlon, and had some of the best spectators a person could ask for. I also ran a half marathon and...

As many of you know I have struggled with injury after injury this year. I'm not going to ramble about it much  tonight because you can read about it here  and here  and here  and here  and here  and here ... I think you get the point. I have been whiny about my injuries this year, and that is only a sample of the posts about being injured: sadly there are more. I was tracking facebook today and saw one of my friends post a quote about how running is hard on your body. My immediate internal response was, uh huh and you needed someone else to tell you that? But my public comment was much more forgiving. Bottom line, running is hard on your body but darn it, it is worth it. Stress is also hard on the body. It doesn't just impact your mind... I was having a particularly perplexing day today and I really needed an outlet, a friend. I posted something on facebook about needing either a workout or a friend. I was lucky enough to get both. One of my friends r...

Awesomely fashionable! I have come to realize a number of things this past year that I have probably blogged about before, but a reminder is always nice. The most important thing? Don't take life too seriously... I go in waves with technology. My use of social media ebbs and flows based on my mood and I have gotten to the point that running without my Garmin is totally worthless, or is it? It is the Christmas season and quite frankly, I am not much of a Christmas person. The shopping is overwhelming, and people always seem to be cranky. Why? I went to work today with all the wrong clothes for a very cold run. While analyzing the clothes a few minutes before the run, I realized I simply wanted to have fun... Over the last few weeks I have found myself accidentally garminless. In some cases it was because I forgot to charge the darn thing, in others it was because I left my garmin at a restaurant and didn't have the energy to go and pick it up at my friend...

My regular readers know what can happen when I am at a loss for words on my blog... I decide I am a poet; the quality of my poetry is arguable... Here's one for you that I am calling Hugs are Underrated. Here I sit with little to say Utterly surprising to many but hey Great times have been had over the last two weeks So summing it up means I'd have to pick peeks A trip to Chicago to eat turkey and treats Real friend and family time, nothing beats, and Even some time spent with athletes Utter chaos at the casino celebrating with friends Never a dull moment for all who attends Depending the moment over the last 15 days Everyone had a role in my life that they play Runners included, who gave me some hugs Remembering that our friendships don't end with shrugs Amazingly for me, I ran many miles Today I sit back and enjoy with smiles Everyone who hugged me decreased my need for yawning; so I'll continue Dance like no one is watching

I didn't even realize I liked Twinkies until they were gone. Unless, of course, I want to buy a box for twenty dollars or more on ebay... I have been to the grocery store, Target, UDF, Speedway and other random stores since Hostess Brands took a nose dive. I never had intentions of looking for hostess items but I found myself looking at the Twinkie shelves longingly, wishing I could have just one more. Gone... When I eat, I eat understanding that everything I put into my body will impact my next work out, sometimes favorably and sometimes less so. There is a reason I prefer running on Saturdays. If I run on Saturday morning, that officially leaves Saturday night to eat less favorably and drink some beer all knowing that my body may suffer on Sunday. Take today for example, because of last night my desire to get to the gym for a swim, well, failed me. I had the best night last night; Started with dinner at the local casino, followed by a little slot action, a cra...

I have written about five blog posts over the last day and a half but nothing is coming out quite right. Quite frankly this is how I feel: Columbus Zoo: He got me! I know, kinda dramatic. I simply feel overwhelmed. I'm getting back into the swing of running, although being on the road for the past ten days has made my progress come to a screeching halt. Ran some, not enough. Walked at least three miles a day, not enough... I acknowledge that this was a long (but positive) week, I worked too much, stayed up too late every night, woke up early every morning, traveled (and if you know me, you know that flying is extremely stressful for me), got to my car in the airport parking lot to a flat tire that was literally stuck on my car. I didn't know how to deal with a tire that was stuck. I was stumped. Who do you call at 10:30 on a Friday night to give you tips? Luckily I remembered my friend has a mechanical husband. I texted her and her husband called and walked me through...

I know I spent a lot of time whining on my blog about the fact that I couldn't run for awhile this summer. Sure, I was being a baby but the reality is this... My foot was so bad that it made doing regular tasks very difficult, if not impossible. The final straw was when my friend and I went out to a balloon festival and I could barely walk around without debilitating pain. He simply said to me, do you really want to compromise all of the marathons in your future for this one event? Wow, did that hit a cord with me. Shortly thereafter I found myself at the doctor's office (I should mention I will still squeeking out miles VERY painfully at this point). The Dr. asked me if I was getting my miles in. Yes. He asked me if I was limping while running. No. He asked me where the pain was. Bottom of my foot. He pressed around, I cried and he told me I have a very bad case of plantar fasciitis. Damn it, I dealt with this before but never so bad. He told me that as long as I wasn'...